Humanity Has a New Star Courtesy Space Startup Rocket Lab

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Credit: Rocket Lab via AP

US startup Rocket lab launched a trio of satellites last weekend. That’s pretty normal these days, as spaceflight goes, but it was what CEO Peter Beck announced afterwards that turned heads. Beck said that the company also released an object that should become the “brightest thing in the night sky.”

The probe, if you can call it that, is shaped like a disco ball. Rocket Lab calls it the “Humanity Star,” and it should reflect sunlight with its array of 65 mirrored panels. It’s spinning, too, like it’s 70s aesthetic inspiration. It is already so bright that people can see it with the naked eye. The path of the satellite allows it to cover all of Earth, and to help stargazers track the object, the company made a website where you can track it.

Ostensibly, the goal of the humanity star was to help provide a symbol of hope and unity for everyone on Earth.

“No matter where you are in the world, or what is happening in your life, everyone will be able to see the Humanity Star in the night sky,” Beck said in a statement. “Our hope is that everyone looking at the Humanity Star will look past it to the vast expanse of the Universe and think a little differently about their lives, actions, and what is important for humanity.”

While the sentiment is noble, astronomers are, understandably, a little miffed. But the object won’t stay in the sky forever. Over the next few months, its orbit will decay and the “star” will fall back to Earth. Plus, there’s plenty of human-man objects that can be seen from Earth, like, say, the International Space Station. The big difference here, though, is that Humanity Star blinks and flickers, thanks to its spin. Because it has no scientific purpose and because the launch was kept secret, there’a good case to be made that this is some sort of mischief. Even so, the heart seems there, and the temporary nature of the thing does defang it a bit.

If anything, it’s certainly a fascinating (albeit somewhat intrusive) art piece, and anything that aims to engender empathy has to be moving in the right direction, eh?